Drops
by PlateDrachen
Summary: Naruto had always loved dancing. Admittedly, his dancing reminded most of the dancing flames of a raging inferno, but such was only fitting. He was born in flame, after all.
1. Raindrops keep falling

Welcome to yet _another_ rewrite of Drops. To any newcomers, this fic is gonna get gross pretty fast, and probably remain that way for the rest of the fic. So if you are easily perturbed by words on a screen, you have been warned.

* * *

"Raindrops keep falling."

Naruto's life had started on a night that he would have _loved_ to remember.

The kyuubi's attack only laid the foundation. Thanks to Minato Namikaze-Naruto's father and the Hokage-using a seal handed down through the Uzumaki family, a seal he modified specifically to seal the kyuubi in case of an emergency, the only deaths were those of ninja who had sacrificed themselves to buy time for Minato to complete his seal. Thanks to their efforts, the kyuubi was sealed, and both Minato and Kushina survived the night, much to the kyuubi's shame.

Thanks to the quick sealing and minimal losses, Minato gained even more fame, cementing his status as a double S-rank ninja and the Village Hidden in the Leaves status as one of the strongest shinobi villages.

Things were going well, all things considered. He had secured two jinchuriki for the village and suffered only minimal losses, and while he wished they hadn't suffered any, he knew it could have been so much worse, and that the village would only become stronger for the loss. They're was just one little hitch getting in the way of a perfect recovery. Namely, one of Konoha's clans, and how much his newborn son resembled them.

His son had been born with midnight-black hair, of all things. It was entirely unexpected, considering the hair colors of his parents, and even their parents, and it was only made more baffling by the fact that his sister, Aris, had been born with their Father's blonde hair. Combine that with tensions against the Uchiha-the most prominent of the black-haired clans-and the night on which he had been born, and you got a _lot_ of people thinking that Naruto was a bad omen.

And those people, unluckily for poor Naruto, knew quite well of the kyuubi's fate.

Minato, unwilling to keep it hidden from the villagers whom had lost loved ones to the kyuubi, publicly announced that he had sealed the kyuubi inside his children, hoping that they would be hailed as heroes or, at the very least, accepted among the populace.

If his future self could see him now, his past self would have ended up with a kunai right between his eyes.

* * *

It was yet _another_ bad day for the six-year-old Naruto. The type that seemed to happen often, as far as he was concerned. His mother was training his sister, Aris, outside without him, once again _**(1)**_ , and his father was at his office, working on . . . whatever is it was he did to keep the village running.

Which, of course, led to yet another day of being both bored and lonely.

Not that he really acknowledged the latter.

Naruto was a fairly unique looking child. Pale skin, which contrasted nicely with his fairly long jet-black hair and cerulean blue eyes that seemed to _glow_ in the dark, combined with a fairly average height and a build on the lithe side of things, led to a regal look rare even amongst the Uchihas and Hyuugas, who were famed for their noble-seeming dark hair and pale skin.

Naruto may not have been overly rambunctious like his sister was, but he was still fairly carefree _**(2)**_ , and he had enough of a mind to get curious. And without any way to satisfy his curiosity besides books (items for which he had gotten good at _borrowing_ from the family library) and by asking his family questions (when they weren't busy working or training), he got bored often. And for one such as Naruto, boredom led to ideas about how to cure said boredom.

He had done everything from set up pranks around the house (which his family tried to laugh off) to simply doing some of the family's chores, like cooking (which his family _did,_ in fact, appreciate. Minato did _not_ , in fact, love ramen as much as Kushina and Aris did).

But he had started to tire of his old way of doing things a while ago.

It didn't help that his sister would be going to the academy soon (right after their shared birthday, in fact), and as he had ample chakra reserves (he had learned how to activate his chakra coils and measure his chakra from a few _borrowed_ scrolls), he wanted to go as well.

His parents had told him that it was too dangerous, due to his lack of training.

He avoided pointing out who's fault that was. Even at his young age, he understood at least _some_ social decorum, even if he didn't really care for it. Reading a lot did that for you.

And so, he had been plotting. Trying to think of a way to show his parents that he would do just fine in the shinobi academy, a place where he felt he could finally escape his endless boredom and curiosity.

The solution he eventually came to was, in his young mind, simply genius.

He would sneak out of his house, explore the village for a little while, all the while remaining out of sight, and just when they noticed he was gone, he would come right back in through the front door.

In his mind, the plan was perfect. Simple, easy enough for him to pull off, and, if done right, impressive. After all, it wasn't everyday that a child his age escaped a clan compound on their own, and with the skills he had developed pranking his family, it would be easy.

And as it turned out, today was the perfect day to enact his plan, as the female members of his family seemed to be doing Kenjutsu practice, if the noises of clashing wood he heard through the walls were any indication. A task which they both tended to get rather absorbed in. And as his father was still at his office, he wouldn't notice his disappearance either.

It was times like these that he was glad his room didn't have any windows. Nobody would notice he was gone until they came to call him for dinner.

* * *

When he had first left the house, running away from a rather organized mob of villagers hadn't been on the agenda.

He most definitely didn't plan on it being this way if it _did_ happen.

"Ya know, you can stop chasing me now! I mean, I haven't even done anything yet!"

They, of course, weren't listening.

"Demon child! Your birth is an omen of ill times!"

"The Uchiha brought the kyuubi to Konoha, they must have! Why else would you take on their appearance, demon!? **_(4)_** "

And so on and so forth.

All the while yelling at the top of their lungs.

He was sure that even his Mother would have been proud. Maybe.

Suffice to say, things were most definitely not going according to plan.

At least they were still leagues behind him.

 _I'm just glad there aren't any ninja in that crowd. These villagers are_ way _too slow to catch up to me, but a ninja might actually stand a chance._

Spotting an alleyway, he darted into it, finally having had enough of the villager's chase.

Only to have his escape brought to a halt when a ANBU, one of Konoha's famed black-ops shinobi, appeared in front of him.

 _Did I just_ jinx _myself? For real?_

That was the last thought he had before he was swiftly chopped in the neck, knocking him unconscious.

* * *

Upon waking up, his first thought was predictable.

 _Definitely jinxed myself._

Shaking off his grogginess, he attempted to take stock of his surroundings.

 _Now, where am I?_

First things first, he decided to take a look at his arms and legs.

Looking to his hands, he wasn't entirely sure he could believe what he was seeing.

The overwhelming pain when he tried to move said hands quickly proved his situation to be _quite_ real.

His hands had been nailed to posts on either side of him.

Looking down, he saw what his legs had been chained to.

 _Is this . . . a pyre?_

For the first time in his life, he experienced real fear, felt it begin to creep in on his conscience. Looking around, he attempted to find answers to the questions that were beginning to filter into his brain.

Then he spotted _her_.

Her hair was a deep blood red, deeper than even his Mother's, and when combined with her matching red eyes and pale skin, she looked like some sort of specter, a vengeful spirit. She had her share of scars, with one over her left eye, another across her nose, and what appeared to be a burn scar covering the entirety of her right arm. If anything, her scars only added to her unique beauty, and with a well shaped face, and a decidedly feminine body, with what one could see through her ANBU uniform, he found himself entranced.

Said trance quickly evaporated once the pain reminded him where he was.

In the end, he decided against asking any questions.

The pain was far too distracting.

He needed a way out.

Looking around, he didn't like what he saw.

Concrete walls, with plain windows. Looking up, he could barely see girders above his head through the darkness.

 _A warehouse? For real? I feel like I'm in a freakin' horror novel!_

Then the door opened, and in came the mob from earlier, carting a large cauldron.

The first he smelled was hot oil. The kind that burned well.

His fear only deepened, and quickly turned into primal terror.

His screaming, however, only began when they poured the oil over him.

It only grew louder when they set the oil ablaze.

Feeling his skin melt, only to _heal_ , was agonizing beyond words.

After about two minutes of this, the woman was left with nothing but nausea.

She knew the punishment would be harsh, but this . . .

Turning to the leader of the mob, she attempted to intervene.

"Isn't this enough, Cardigan? There's no way he can recover from this."

No way he could be used to bring anymore harm to their village.

Cardigan was a simple looking man. Brown hair, brown eyes, and a relatively average build, the only thing truly notable about him was his eyes. They seemed lifeless, but within, their was a hint of an almost zealous purpose. This man had been out of town on a mission when the kyuubi attacked, and his wife, the love of his life, had died defending the Hokage, without him at her side. He never forgave himself, nor did he forgive the kyuubi.

Turning to her, he gave a simple response.

"He's a Jinchuriki, Rosa. Even more than that, he's one of the holders of the nine-tailed fox. A beast that is well known to be the strongest of the Bijuu."

Seeing the look of nausea on her face, he continued.

"Sit back, relax, and enjoy the light show. In the end, he may not die, but he will be _far_ too broken for the kyuubi to use him to bring further misfortune upon the village. Isn't that what you wanted?"

Looking back towards the subject of their discussion, she noticed he had stopped screaming.

"What I want is the return of my family. That isn't going to happen. And so, in the end, I have to settle for maiming the host of the beast who did it."

But was it really the _right_ thing to do?

Cardigan simply nodded.

"That's true for all of us. If we're lucky, once the Hokage catches wind of this, he will send us to be with our loved ones. We will be free of our suffering, at long last."

Unbeknownst to all of them, the subject of their ire's mind had broken a while ago, and since then, he had been listening to their every word. A smile stretched upon his face.

Naruto had just discovered the perfect way to extract just a _teensy_ bit of vengeance.

 _Forgiveness._

* * *

The Hokage and his wife were not pleased when they were informed of what had happened under their watch.

The walk through the halls of the hospital was tense, silence filling the air. The nurse leading them through the halls didn't know what to make of it. Minato seemed both angry and worried. Kushina . . .

She looked conflicted.

Before Rosa could ponder this further, they were all intercepted by the head doctor, Kurihara Yosuke.

Brown hair roughly tied into a ponytail, combined with a face covered with the stress lines that only working in a ninja hospital could provide, it was nonetheless easy to see Kurihara had once been a beautiful woman. One with a well shaped face, chocolate eyes, a curvy body, and lightly tanned skin. At forty years old, she hid her age remarkably well.

"Minato-san, Kushina-san." She seemed pissed. At what, they couldn't tell.

Probably for the best they didn't realize her anger was directed at them, or more specifically, their negligence.

"How is he?" Minato wasted no time.

Kurihara let out a sigh, deciding to put her anger aside for the moment. She had a job to do.

"Physically, he's going to be fine. More than fine, actually. Not even going to be any physical scarring." Kurihara replied. The doctors had been truly surprised when his wounds healed faster than they could patch them up. She was just relieved to see that the kyuubi was working so hard. Gave her hope that there was some good in that fox after all.

After letting out a sigh of relief, Minato caught on to something she had said. "More than fine?" That piqued Minato's interest.

"Yup. As you know, the seal is designed to allow the kyuubi to turn its' chakra into a sort of protective force. Healing wounds, blocking out discomfort, and so on and so forth. The kyuubi, for one reason or another, decided that the best way to protect its' host was to filter the chakra into reshaping his body. More specifically, super-charging his growth hormones and changing his muscles. He's grown five inches from his original height of three feet seven inches, and while his growth has slowed down, his muscles still appear to be undergoing some kind of change." Kurihara explained.

"What kind? Is it harmful?" Minato asked.

Kurihara shook her head.

"Actually, they appear to be becoming more malleable, as in, more receptive to training. They also seem to be becoming . . . denser, for lack of a better term. We don't know for sure, but it seems like his muscles will be able to hold more strength in a smaller area than a normal human. In other words, he may well remain lithe his whole life, and still be able to lift something twice his size without even using his chakra."

"That's . . . good news? With an advantage like that, it may be safe to enroll him into the academy. What about his . . . mental state?" Minato asked.

Kushina remained silent.

Here, Kurihara released yet another sigh.

"As he hasn't woken up yet, probably due to his growth and possibly the trauma, we can't say for sure. With what those . . . _animals_ did to him, however, he may well be scarred for life."

At this, the nurse decided it was time to make her escape.

"Only thing we know for sure is . . . well, you'll see for yourself."

Casting a glance at Kushina, Minato pondered what she meant.

He didn't have to wonder long.

Entering his room, they almost didn't recognize him.

With his larger muscles and increased height, he didn't look at all like he did that morning.

When they finally did notice him (he was the only patient in the room), they were shocked.

The ends of his hair had turned stark white, a permanent reminder of what had happened that day.

* * *

(1) Kushina, as I'll go into next chapter, wasn't comfortable with Naruto. Minato, seeing how Kushina kept him locked in the house, figured she was just trying to protect him, and did nothing about it.

(2) Naruto, being as sheltered as he was, with his only contact with the outside world being through books (of which some were, admittedly, pretty dark), and his family, he could either look on the bright side or become moody and depressed. He chose the former.

(3) About enough to make a thousand shadow clones. Not quite as much as his sister, but still far more than anyone would expect from a child his age.

(4) With Aris being so loved, some of the villagers quickly began to think that the kyuubi attacked to cleanse the village of the Uchiha. Since Naruto is the only "Uchiha" outside of the protection of their district besides the ninja, they quickly took to hating him. As for those who still blamed the kyuubi, they also directed their hatred towards Naruto, believing he inherited its' evil.

* * *

Rewrite, done. Still gruesome.


	2. Forgive, but not forget

"Forgive, but not forget."

The first thing Naruto heard upon waking up was the sound of dripping water.

 _Why the heck do I keep waking up away from my bed?_

 _And why the heck did I wake up on my feet?_

Looking down, he, at first, believed someone else to be in his place.

Then he realized that it, in fact, _was_ his reflection.

Black hair with white ends, muscles where he once had only a few, and flowing wine-wait, wine?

Indeed they were. And right in the center of his eyes, he spotted something extraordinary.

An ornate rose, of which the petals seemed to be turning of their own volition. It reminded him of a kaleidoscope.

A flowing ocean of wine, surrounding a shifting rose. His own eyes had turned into pieces of abstract art.

Which just so happened to be one of his favorite kinds.

 _Cool._

Getting up and looking around, he saw he was in some sort of sewer. One with water up to just below his knees, plain brick walls, and pipes running along a brick ceiling. The place seemed remarkably well maintained, for a sewer.

 _Did the villagers dump me in here after having their way with me? How heartbreaking._

 _Oh well. At least it's a nice sewer._

Seeing nothing better to do with his time, he picked a direction, and began to walk.

Something he found strange (then promptly ignored) was that the water didn't restrict his movement or chill his feet at all. In fact, it almost seemed to be pushing him along with a pleasantly warm current.

He lost track of time, walking through the sewer. No sunlight, no real difference in his surroundings. Just when he was about to stop for nap, however, was when he encountered it.

It was a big room. High ceilings, far walls, and it was given an ominous feeling by the candles that casted way more light than should be possible for mere candles.

It was made even more ominous by the bars at the end.

"Cool."

Not that Naruto minded. He had always had a certain fondness for creepy stuff.

Walking forward, he saw two eyes flash in the darkness. Two blood red _slitted_ eyes.

Then _she_ spoke.

 **"Hello, kit."**

He didn't waste a moment.

"Hello!" He greeted.

He saw her eyes blink in surprise.

 **"You seem awfully cheery for someone who was just roasted alive."**

"Yup! After all, they didn't even bother to eat me after giving me such a good cooking. I mean, really, I'm pretty sure even my bones were melting!"

At this, he let out a chuckle.

"All in all, today could have been a lot worse."

Seeing the bright smile on his face, she could tell he wasn't lying.

 _ **Interesting. Did they break his mind after all?**_

 **". . . and here I thought I'd attempt to befriend you while you were feeling down. _(1)_ "**

Here, he simply shook his head and gave her a bright smile.

"Thanks for the thought, but I'll be fine. You know what they say, don't get mad, get even."

 _ **Inter- Wait, what?**_

"I figure that if I ask Dad to forgive them, being the bleeding heart he is, he will. Then they have to live, and watch me grow up to be the biggest, baddest hero alive! It'll be a real . . . uh, what's the word I'm looking for? Bloodbath! Wait, that's not quite right."

He then put a hand under his chin, and began to think.

Judging by the manic grin on his face, he was having a hard time keeping himself on track.

 ** _Wow, even I would have been hard pressed to think of such a thoroughly spiteful plan. He let's them live, taking advantage of his father's nature and prolonging their suffering, than he makes them watch as he, the one they hate, raises himself to the top. Smart. I get the feeling we're gonna get along_ just _fine._**

"Anyways, what's your name?"

Surprised by the sudden change in topic, it took her a second to respond.

 **"I'm Kyo, your 'tenant', of sorts."**

"Tenant? Then that must make you the kyuubi! I'm Naruto, and you know what? I get the feeling we're gonna get along just fine!"

She hadn't been planning on things going this way, but judging by the expression on his face, she guessed that any plans she made involving him would quickly fall apart.

After all, no one could predict the moves of the insane.

Plus, she had a good feeling about this friendship, and unlike her brother, she wasn't weighed down by centuries of negative emotions to bias her decision.

The choice was, in her mind, easy.

 **"Sure."** She replied.

With a brilliant smile, Naruto then made a show of strolling into her cage, and took a seat against her side. Where he promptly settled down and relaxed, asking her about her likes and hobbies.

How he could bounce from being hyperactive one second to overly relaxed the next was a mystery, even to her, but she imagined it would, if nothing else, keep things from getting boring.

* * *

Waking up again (which is just as jarring as you would think), he heard his parents discussing something.

"Explain to me again why you thought it would be a good idea to _lock_ someone as mischievous as Naruto in his room, and then _not_ check up on him?" Minato asked.

Before Kushina could respond, he decided to intervene.

"Would you guys mind keeping it down? People are trying to sleep here."

Their heads snapped towards him so fast, he was surprised their necks didn't break.

Minato was the first to recover.

"Naruto, glad to see you awake. How do you feel?" Minato asked.

Naruto gave him a smile.

"Pretty good, considering the villagers just attempted to turn me into fried chicken. What did I miss?"

Minato and Kushina quickly turned pale.

Cocking his head at them when they didn't answer, he turned towards the room's third occupant. One who was shadowed on either side by ANBU.

"Rosa-san, what are you doing here?"

Quickly getting over the shock of being addressed, by _name_ no less, she responded.

"I turned myself in, Namikaze-sama."

At this, Naruto frowned.

"Would you quit it with the honorifics? Just call me Naruto, everyone else does." Just like that, he waved it off. Everything she had done, and he could care less.

She wasn't sure what to think.

Before she could respond, however, he continued.

"Well, besides the villagers, anyways. I wonder if demon could be considered a respectful title?" At this, he quickly put his hand to his chin, imitating a thinking pose. It looked rather ridiculous, considering he was still laying down.

At his casual admission of the way the villagers treated him, she couldn't help but frown.

Naruto then clapped his hands together.

"At any rate," he addressed them.

"Is anyone going to answer my question, or am I going to have to go and find out for myself?"

* * *

Once he had awoken, Naruto's recovery only seemed to get faster.

He was out of the hospital by the end of the week, three days since the villagers had made like he was a witch on their front lawn.

For one who had nearly died through one of the most painful forms of execution known to man, he bounced back fast. Something that had his family, and anyone who knew what happened, reeling.

Suffice to say, Naruto was glad to have finally gotten out of the hospital. It had been overly boring, and his parents were always arguing whenever they visited. Something Aris really didn't seem to know what to think. Probably didn't get the full story about what had happened to him.

Looking into the mirror in his bathroom, he lazily watched the tomoe in his wine colored eyes spin back and forth.

 _The Sharingan, huh?_

 **Like I said, it's the only thing it could be. Enhanced perception, the ability to see chakra flows, plus other various effects that could only result from it being the Sharingan. Admittedly, yours is somewhat different from the norm, but-**

 _That suits me just fine._

Being normal was something he no longer cared for.

As for the rest of his situation, he still had to stay at home and rest for a little while before he was cleared for anything really strenuous, such as training, but at least now he could spend some real time outside.

He only had to wait two more days before he was finally considered back to full health, and then he would begin attending the academy in two weeks time, alongside his sister. He couldn't wait!

But for now . . .

 _Let's go outside and enjoy the weather, shall we?_

* * *

Having been rarely allowed outside before now, the world outside felt . . . _refreshing._

It was a rather novel experience for Naruto, to say the least.

One he was all too glad to partake in.

The gentle breeze across his face, the smell of freshly blooming flowers, and the sounds of an active forest.

It felt like _freedom_.

It would have felt even more like freedom is his retainer hadn't been watching him like a hawk.

His father, in his typical fashion, decided that the best way to give her a new lease on life would be to stick her with babysitting him.

Something she seemed all too happy to do, much to his ire.

Kyo decided it was as good a time as any to ask her questions.

 **So what's the plan, Naruto?**

 _Plan?_

 **How do you plan to train?**

 _Hmm. . ._

 **. . . You don't have any idea, do you?**

 _I figured I'd just start with the basics. Calisthenics and whatnot. After that . . . swords? Swords! And I know_ just _the type to train with!_

 **Oh? Care to enlighten me?**

 _The katana! Specifically, a double-edged one. Non-curved, of course._

 **A double-edged katana? It suits you, I think. So you have a weapon, and at least an idea for a workout plan. Now you just need to come up with a real fighting style.**

 _Hmm . . ._

Before he could continue his conversation with his favorite tenant (not that he had more than one), however, he was interrupted by a rather familiar voice.

"Nii-chan, can I talk to you?"

Turning to look at her, he was surprised by what he saw.

Aris Uzumaki-Namikaze was bright. Really bright. Blonde hair tied into twin tails that didn't _quite_ reach her shoulders, pink-colored eyes, and a outgoing personality led to a person that just about everybody loved. There were even rumors that the _Uchihas_ liked her, and they were damn near _incestuous_ with who they liked.

It was hard see the sun that she usually was now, however.

Bags under her eyes, mussed hair, and swollen eyes told a sad story.

So he did what he did best.

Follow his instincts.

He quickly grabbed her hand, and then pulled her into his lap.

Letting out a cute squeak, she landed on his crossed legs.

Looking down at her blushing face, he was glad he had grown as much as he had. He wouldn't have been able to do this comfortably otherwise.

Not that it would have stopped him.

"What's up, sis?"

Her face quickly darkened again.

"Um . . . do you know why Mom and Dad are fighting?"

Naruto gave her a guilty smile.

"I think that's my bad. I left the house a few days ago and nearly got burnt to a crisp. Dad's angry because Mom didn't notice until way later, and Mom . . . well, you know how she is around me."

Aris processed this, then nodded.

"So that's what it is . . ."

Aris frowned.

Looking up at him, she quickly asked another question.

"Are you sure that's all it is?"

Looking down at her eyes, he answered honestly.

"Honestly, I don't know for sure, but I get the feeling it's more of a symptom than a disease, if you catch my drift."

Aris merely gave him a raised eyebrow.

"Maybe?"

Letting out a chuckle, he simply pet her hair.

After a while of this, she then proceeded to burrow her head into his chest, and a short while later, she was fast asleep.

 _Looks like she needs the rest._

 _. . ._

 _Dearest mother, you still haven't gotten over those nightmares, have you?_

The only thing Kushina remembered from the night of the kyuubi attack was a man, a man with medium-length midnight-black hair. Typical of an Uchiha.

Also just like Naruto's was, until recently.

Minato remembered more of that night than Kushina, but even he didn't remember for sure who unleashed the kyuubi.

Kushina fancied she did, what with the nightmares and all.

Naruto had only found out about the nightmares when he woke up in the middle of the night and heard his parents talking about it through their door.

He quickly pieced together the reason why his Mom had trouble with him.

Feeling Aris begin to twitch against his chest, he took a glance at her.

Seeing red wisps of chakra begin to float from her skin, he frowned.

 _That must be Kyo's other half causing a ruckus._

Petting Aris's head, he addressed Kyo.

 _Kyo, would you mind absorbing that excess chakra? I'd rather the two weren't interrupted._

 **. . . Sure.**

* * *

The first thing Aris did upon awakening was attempt to panic.

Naruto quickly took hold of her.

"Shh. I'm here. You can relax."

Upon hearing his voice, she relaxed into his grip.

"Nii-chan . . . can I talk to you?" She whispered.

He gave out a light chuckle.

"What's with this asking permission business? You're never this shy. Say what you want to say."

At his admonishment, she began to pout.

Letting out a sigh, he continued.

"At any rate, is this about your tenant?"

At this, she let out a hesitant nod.

Seeing that she didn't know where to start, he took the lead.

"Want some advice?"

Upon seeing her nod her head, he began.

"Your tenant has a good reason to hate the world, even if he doesn't have a good reason to direct that hatred towards you. He's had to deal with literal _centuries_ of mostly misdirected hate. That's something that'd make anyone at least a little bitter."

Seeing he still had her attention, he continued.

"That just makes it all the more important you keep trying."

Seeing the look of surprise on her face, he smiled.

"We're supposed to be the good guys, sis. That means that we have to do the right thing, even if the right thing is just following your instincts."

Letting out a slight chuckle, he continued.

"Plus, there's something to be said about having a companion that's always with you. There are lots of people in this world who would kill for such an opportunity."

Here, he put on a grin.

"Even if that companion is a little fuzzier than most."

Feeling her let out a light giggle against his chest, his smile grew.

Feeling her fully relax into his chest, he realized she had fallen asleep again.

 _Oh well._

 _Not like I have anything better to do with my time._

* * *

Walking through the Uchiha district, he was pleasantly surprised by the glances he was getting.

They were glances of curiosity, instead of outright mistrust.

Every once in a while, he would even get a friendly wave, of which he gladly returned.

He supposed he had his appearance to thank for the relatively warm welcome.

A black shirt, black pants, and his hair in it's typical near shoulder length fashion. He looked like he belonged in the Uchiha district.

Looking down at the paper in his hands, he stopped and looked forward.

 _So this is it, huh? The home of Mikoto Uchiha._

Mikoto was, as far as he was aware, a longtime friend of his mother's.

He had come here on a whim, curious about the type of Uchiha who could be friends with his oddball of a mother, especially now that she had developed something of a phobia of black hair.

Knocking on the door, it wasn't long before he heard the scuffling of feat.

Opening the door, the person on the other side looked surprised to see him there.

Hair worn down to her shoulders, with a bang between her black eyes, she had a black shirt, and white shorts. She was his age, and only a few inches shorter.

"Yo." He greeted.

She quickly shut the door in his face.

At this, the curiosity of the stares around him intensified.

Scratching his head, he couldn't help but wonder.

"Was it something I said?"

* * *

After being let in, Naruto followed Mikoto to their living room, all the while listening to her speak.

"Sorry about Sasuke, this is around the time her brother usually returns home, and . . . well, anyways. What brings you here Naruto-kun?"

At this, he gave her a bright smile.

"A whim."

Both Sasuke (who had been giving a curious stare up 'til this point) and Mikoto gave him a surprised glance.

"A . . . whim?" Sasuke asked.

"Yup! Most Uchiha have their heads too far up their asses to even consider dealing with someone as whimsical as my mother, so I wanted to meet the person who didn't mind being the exception."

Mikoto's expression quickly turned nostalgic. He probably reminded her of his mother.

Before she could respond, however, Naruto quickly continued on, turning to Sasuke.

"So, your name is Sasuke, eh?"

Sasuke stifled a squeak of surprise at being addressed.

"Y-Yes?"

Naruto quickly grabbed her hand and shook it.

"A pleasure to meet you, cuz."

"Cuz?"

Her question was quickly answered when she looked into his eyes.

Three tomoe surrounded his pupil, swimming in a sea of wine.

"Yup. Cuz."

* * *

The Uchiha massacre had been a long time coming.

With the tensions the way they were, it was that, or civil war.

Didn't mean it wasn't sad though.

That was the thought pervading Naruto's mind, as he walked through the Uchiha district. With his sense of smell, he could smell a fresh kill in the forest outside the village from his newly installed window.

Smelling the spilled blood in the Uchiha district was all too easy.

And with how good he had gotten at evading Rosa, sneaking out had been rather easy.

Walking along the streets, he was torn.

The smell of blood was _lovely_ , but . . .

He couldn't help the feeling of melancholy the pervaded his being when he saw the bodies surrounding him.

Not all of them were nice people, or even neutral, but . . .

They had begun to feel like family.

It was times like these that he thought he might understand why his father strove for peace.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sight of a familiar mane.

Sprinting forward it took him less than a second to reach her side.

Feeling her neck for a pulse, he let out a sigh of relief.

"At least Sasuke's fine. Now, let's see here . . ."

A blink was all it took for him to activate his Mangekyo, Uteki, and it's unique ability.

At this point, time seemed to stop.

On instinct, Naruto turned to his left, and watched as blood flew in from his surroundings to form a lens in front of his eyes.

Through said lens, he saw Itachi.

And while he could not hear him, reading his lips was all too easy.

Shaking his read to release the jutsu, the blood splattered back onto the ground.

Turning his once again blue eyes onto Sasuke, he lifted her onto his shoulder.

Walking towards the door to his favorite Uchiha household, he couldn't help but wonder.

He hadn't known Itachi for long, but even he could tell.

This wasn't Itachi's style. He was loyal to the village to a fault, and a pacifist as well.

Murdering the Uchiha clan for the sake of testing his power was a lie. He knew it was.

So that left two possibilities.

Either he did it on his own initiative, to stop the civil war . . .

Or he had been ordered to do it.

Either way . . .

Naruto felt a little bit of vengeance was in order.

Walking through the household, the first body he came across was Fugaku's. While he was the ringleader behind the Uchiha insurrection, he was proud, but surprisingly fair. As far as Uchihas went, he could've been far worse. Not to mention that he was willing to teach Naruto, who was basically an outsider, what he needed to know to make use of the Mangekyo.

But he wasn't who Naruto was looking for.

Checking his neck for a pulse, he quickly moved on when he found nothing.

He found who he was looking for further in.

Mikoto laid sprawled on the bedroom floor, leaking blood onto the floor.

Kneeling down, he checked her neck for a pulse.

And found something.

Letting out a whoop, he quickly threw her onto his other shoulder, and hopped out the nearby window.

His next stop?

The hospital.

* * *

Naruto couldn't help but let out a yawn as he woke up.

Taking stock of his surrounds, he realized he was still in the hospital. Sitting in a bedside chair.

 _Oh yeah, I was waiting for Sasuke to wake up. Still, how the hell did I manage to fall asleep?_

 **Call it a talent.**

 _Well, I guess it is._

Looking down at the bed, he was surprised to Sasuke stirring.

"Yo."

At the sound of his, she quickly tried to spring forward.

Only for him to push her back down.

"Woah now, take it slow. I wouldn't know what to do if you started panicking."

Sasuke simply gave him a blank look.

" . . . Cuz."

"Yeah?" He replied.

"Am I . . . the only . . . ?"

He shook his head.

"You and Mikoto both survived, though she had to go through surgery. One of her lungs had been punctured beyond repair. Doctors said it was a miracle she survived."

Sasuke's eyes widened.

"So she's . . . ?"

At this, Naruto rolled his eyes.

"She's going to be fine. Not exactly gonna come home in one piece, but, eh, what can you do?"

Sasuke merely gave him a weak glare, used to his antics at this point.

But then she turned her gaze away.

"So . . ."

Naruto raised an eyebrow at her.

"So . . . what?"

"Why are you here, instead of with Mom?"

At this, Naruto gave a shrug.

"Eh, call it a whim."

Sasuke couldn't help but let out a chuckle.

"You sure seem to have a lot of those."

Naruto nodded.

"They follow me wherever I go." He agreed.

At this, his grin turned a bit manic.

"Not that I mind."

* * *

Here it was. The academy. He had been waiting for this day.

Not that he hadn't gotten anything done while he had been waiting.

Sasuke had recovered fully, and while Mikoto was still in the hospital, it seemed she would be fine.

His training hadn't been progressing all that well, he felt. The few times he sparred with her, Rosa assured him he was doing unnaturally well, but since no matter what he did, she could deflect or dodge it, he wasn't entirely inclined it believe it. Though he _had_ gotten pretty close that one time he threw dirt in her eyes. The look on her face had been _priceless._

 _Oh well._

Focusing on the bad stuff just _so_ wasn't his style. It'd make him old and wrinkly, and while he may have liked his new salt-and-pepper hair, he didn't care to add any ammo to his classmates insult stash.

Walking into his class, he saw he was the first student there. Something he found relatively surprising.

Looking up to the front of the class, he saw the woman who would be his teacher for the next six years. If anyone asked, he was only _slightly_ smitten. _Slightly_.

"Ah, you must be Naruto-kun. My name is Umino Iruka, it's a pleasure to meet you." Said teacher addressed him.

She looked like a stickler for rules. Which kinda sucked, 'cause she was a beautiful woman. Long flowing brown hair, a scar across her nose that, in his eyes, gave her curved face a bit of personality, lips that he was sure would have his classmates, male _and_ female, drooling in a few years, and curves women would and _have_ killed to have. Dressed in fairly typical chunin wear, it added a tomboyish look to her otherwise professional persona.

He'd just have to brighten her days with some pranks! _Everybody_ loved pranks, after all.

Man, but was it going to be a fun six years.

* * *

(1) The being known as the kyuubi was split in half. Under normal circumstances, as a chakra monster, this wouldn't mean much of anything to anyone. However, thanks to the unique nature of the seal used, both sides maintained their memories, but over time, became different beings. Kyo, the yin side, was only the mind, and she lacked the negative feelings that Kurama still possessed. Negative feelings which Kurama had very little mind to keep under control.

* * *

A whole 'nother rewrite, and this chapter is _still_ a damned mess.

At any rate, Minato just gave the criminals everything from life in prison to a virtual slap on the wrist, due to a convincing argument from Naruto and his own relatively peaceful nature.

Rosa had been assigned to be Naruto's personal retained until ordered otherwise, leaving her a whole lot of time with which to train Naruto.

And yes, Naruto is still going to be both S _and_ M.


	3. Talents

"Talents."

Naruto didn't know what to think of his peers.

On one hand, Aris and Sasuke were in the class, and he rather enjoyed their company.

On the other hand, all of the other clan kids were there, too, along with some non-clan ones.

Thinking about it some more, he figured he may as well be glad for it.

After all, they were all horribly strange. Just the way he liked his people. Just like him.

"Troublesome."

"Shikamaru, stop sleeping in class! It's the first day and you're already going to get us in trouble!"

"Um, won't Shikamaru be the only one to get in trouble?"

Ino gave Choji a harsh glare for his efforts. One which he quickly caved to.

From what he had heard, they were already taking after their parents. Scary.

Hinata, the Hyuuga heiress, was also in his class. Although, she was sitting quietly in the back corner of the class room, compared to his window seat more towards the middle.

 _Seems a little shy to be a ninja. Oh well._

After all, shinobi came from all walks of life.

"C'mon Kiba, leave her alone."

"Really, sis? I was just saying hello!"

The Inuzuka twins, Kiba and Kita, along with their twin dogs, Akamaru and Akimaru. Joy of joys. Even better, they were bugging his sister, even though her seat was in the front of the class. Or more accurately, one was bugging his sister while the other told him to stop. While the dogs just watched. Typical.

And judging by the looks Aris kept giving him, he'd probably be the one to deal with it, too.

 _Well, I'll just have to make it enjoyable then, won't I?_

Ino had, at one point or another, moved herself over to the side a pink haired girl, and had begun chatting away. _Sakura, I think?_

Sasuke had, surprisingly, taken the seat right in front of him. Judging by the glow on the cheeks of both boys and girls within the class, she was going to have a fan-club in a few years.

 _Bet I'll be able to take some_ interesting _photos for 'em._

"Quiet down, everyone, it's time to begin our class." At their sensei's words, the class settled down. Naruto seemed to be the only one surprised by this.

Quieting down a classroom of rambunctious six-year-old's took a special type of moxie.

"For the next six years, you will be studying to become shinobi, as you already know. More than that, however, you will be training to be the _best_ you that you can be." Pausing for effect (and to make sure she had everyone's attention), she then continued.

"Our village was founded by Hashirama Senju, alongside Madara Uchiha, and he had one simple, but important, belief. We now know that belief as the Will of Fire, and it is at the heart of Konoha. It is the belief that by loving one's village, you can achieve the ability to protect it. More than anything else during your time here, it is important that you learn what the Will of Fire _truly_ means. A meaning, that will be ultimately be decided by all of you. For only you, can choose what to you wish to believe."

Seeing she still had everyone's attention, she concluded on a lighter note.

"But it is also important to remember that you have a long time to ponder this. Focus on bettering yourself, on living life to its' fullest, and these answers will come on their own."

When she smiled, Naruto _swore_ he only blushed a _little_.

Luckily enough for him, nobody seemed to notice.

 _Only six years old, and I already have a crush on my teacher. God, but my life is already_ way _too complicated._

Judging by the giggle he heard from Kyo, she heartily agreed.

* * *

Class had been boring as hell.

If he'd known he already knew all the stuff they would be teaching, he would have brought his patented Prank-planning notebook™.

At least lunch was looking like it was going to be marginally more entertaining.

"The high and mighty Hyuuga. To what do we owe the _pleasure_ of your appearance in our pleasant little academy?" Sneered a rather average looking bully.

Brown haired, brown eyed, average build, and toting around two _very_ similar looking henchmen. Yup, someone ripped these guys straight out of some cheap manga.

 _Seriously, guys like this will pick on anyone who looks weaker then they are. It's disgusting! If you're going to pick on someone, save it for the bedroom! And get some dynamic character progression while you're at it, too. Being a background character is_ so _last century._

Looking around, he saw people begin to take notice. Seeing that some of them looked like they wanted to intervene, he decided to go first.

 _No way in hell am I gonna let someone steal_ my _fun._

Walking up, he tapped the leader on the shoulder.

When he turned to look at him with a dumb "Huh?", he went ahead and gave him a good old right hook, knocking him flat on his ass.

"He sucker punched him!" Someone screamed.

 _Ooh, but that felt_ good _. You know, I think these bullies might be on to something with the whole audience thing._

The bullies' friends didn't wait long to return fire.

Dancing around their punches with ease due to the reflexes granted to him by Rosa's training, he decided to step it up a notch when he the saw the leader get back up.

When the one on his right went for yet another punch, Naruto used his right hand to redirect goon number one's fist into the face of goon number two, the one on his left.

Judging by the sound of cracking bones, the goon on the right didn't know how to throw a proper punch.

"My hand!" Well, there was one down for the count.

Giving a sympathetic hiss, Naruto decided to give him some friendly advice.

"That looks painful, I'd recommend getting that looked at. And also learning how to throw a proper _punch_ , but that can wait."

Friendly- _ish_ , anyway.

"Ya Basthard!" Judging by the way Goon 2 was mincing his words, he had probably lost a few teeth when his buddy socked him.

If he lost a few teeth from a punch like that, he must be rather _weak-chinned._

God, but Naruto loved terrible humor.

Dodging yet another horribly thrown punch from the second goon, he couldn't resist even more.

"Geez, didn't your mum ever teach you not to talk with a tooth (or three) missing? It makes a generic goon like you sound even _more_ ugly, if you can believe it."

When the leader came up behind him in an attempt to hold him in place, he quickly ducked down, letting him get hit in the face by his own goon.

Jeez, but these guys really just don't _learn_.

When the goon froze up in shock after he knocked his leader out cold, Naruto quickly decided to apply the best cure he knew.

By adding foot to face.

And with that, the fight was over.

Looking around, Naruto admired his handiwork with a toothy grin.

"Naruto!" Why, that sounded an awful lot like an angry Iruka-sensei.

 _Uh-oh._

"What exactly do you think you're doing?"

Giving her a confused look, he answered honestly.

"Um, playing with my classmates?"

If the look of shock was anything to go by, she didn't exactly appreciate his honesty.

The look of shock quickly turned into one of resignation.

She let out a sigh.

"I should have figured this would happen . . ."

Looking at the downed goons, she gave Naruto an order.

"Naruto, go and get the nurse. He'll want to look at these three."

Giving her a winning smile, he turned to Hinata.

"See you later, Hinata-chan."

If the blush she gave was anything to go by, he had just gained himself a new friend.

Man, if making friends was this easy, he'd have to do it more often!

* * *

Another rewrite done.

Fun fact: It turns that during part one of Naruto, Iruka is 22 years old. That's six years after this point in time. Luckily enough, it's not unheard of for ninja to be chunin by 16, or even younger, so that works out. It helps that Mizuki is also about 21 at this point in time, perfect for his assistant teacher position.


	4. Blood drops keep falling

"Blood drops keep falling."

Naruto could appreciate taking it slow. Enjoying nature, chilling with friends, getting lectured by your teachers, and so on and so forth. After all, these were things that he didn't get to experience until he was six.

That didn't mean he _had_ to enjoy it, though. _Especially_ when he had other things he'd rather do.

"Naruto, would you just listen to me!?"

His sensei was just as beautiful and strict as ever. Though the frown on her face only showed one of those qualities.

She never did take a liking to his pranks. A real travesty, if you asked him.

Not that anybody did. Or needed to. He was pretty good at letting his opinion be known.

"I mean-just look at what you did to the Hokage monument!" Here, she gestured to right outside the window of her office.

And look he did. He was just as impressed with his work as the first time he had gazed upon it.

He had turned the Hokage monument into a drag party with nothing but a few colors of paint and his imagination.

Not that anybody had seen him doing it. Really, for a village that was full of ninja and constantly patrolled by the ANBU, they had _never_ caught him, not once.

Even Aris could get away with doing stuff like this, and she wore bright orange. Bright. _Motherfucking_. Orange. Admittedly, it was pretty rad, but still. Not a stealth color.

He was honestly starting to find it kinda boring. If it weren't for his nature and overly dramatic acting, they wouldn't have a clue who did it.

"Moi? Why, I would never do something as atrocious and utterly despicable as turn the Hokage monument into a work of art! Truly, madame, you wound me." So his acting was something you'd expect to see in some fancy-dancy play, but what could he say?

He had a love for the dramatic.

His teacher did not, judging by the the twitching of her brows. A gesture he had come to known as the sign that her temper was about to explode. Now he couldn't let that happen, could he?

And so, he did what he did best.

Go off the rails.

"Your beauty really does shine it's brightest when you are smiling, sensei."

Her blush was barely even noticeable this time.

She had long since grown used to his constant flirting. And the flowers. And the love notes. And the not-so-innocent drawings. And everything else.

At this point, he just did it because he thought it was fun. Though he would admit, she _was_ adorable whenever she received one of his "gifts".

Though he had noticed that she had potted all the Amaryllis' he had given to her. Guess she appreciated what they meant _**(1)**_. He thought they fit his sensei perfectly.

Flowers had become his second favorite way to convey meaning. Quicker than a drawing, more to the point than a letter.

Though the latter two tended to be more accepting of blood. Bloodying a flower tended to subtract from it's meaning, rather than add to it.

Letting out a sigh, his sensei decided to give up on her pointless pursuit.

"Just, show up on time for the graduation test tomorrow, okay? I'm fairly confident you'll pass, but that's only if you show up, Naruto-kun."

He gave her his best winning smile.

"For you, Iruka-sensei? Absolutely."

The blank stare he got in return for his efforts showed him _exactly_ how much she believed _that_ statement.

Before she could decide to continue the lecture, however, he was out the window.

He had better things to with his time than sit and listen to his teacher scold him, no matter how much he liked her company. Or the scolding.

* * *

It had been a quick six years. Time sure flew when you were having fun.

He had grown to a solid five feet in height, though no matter how much he exercised, his muscles refused to grow any larger than they were. Which was basically a swimmers build. A shame, really. He imagined overly bulging muscles would do a lot for his image.

He had taken to wearing red. A _lot_ of red. A red long-coat, red leather gloves, red leather boots, and a red-tinged black vest over a blood-red shirt. Complete with a red sheath for his favorite sword.

His chosen ensemble, besides not actually being made entirely out of leather, was great for blood stains like no other clothes could be.

He had pulled off 63 pranks, 11 of which were village wide.

He had finally beaten his Rosa in a spar. Something he was quite proud of. Right up until she took off her training weights.

He then learned the meaning of masochism all over again.

Right before he beat her again, winning a bet.

He now called her Rosa-chan.

He had completed the water walking exercise. Shortly afterwards, he had the idea to use chakra to _lessen_ his connection the ground. In essence, he had redeveloped high speed skating.

It was great for chases.

He had unlocked two Mangekyo jutsus. Amaterasu and his very own, Uteki _**(2)**_. Something he was sure Sasuke would be jealous of, if she knew.

Sasuke still did his best to ignore him, though she no longer outright avoided him.

Naruto had decided to keep the other side of his heritage a secret, for now. That way, he could actually use the Sharingan as a trump card, instead of as a crutch.

His father had finalized his divorce with Kushina, something which Naruto found surprising. Just went to show it wasn't all about him, he supposed. On the other hand, he and his father continued to coexist in harmony.

It might have helped that they were both left behind by Kushina and Aris a short while after the academy started. Apparently, all Minato had been told was that Aris wished to be trained in use of the Kyuubi's chakra, and Kushina had decided that leaving the village would be the best course of action if she wished to train Aris.

After all, It would be _bad_ if Mari lost control of the kyuubi inside of Konoha. Especially since she carried the Yang, which meant her chakra balance was all over the place.

It was probably for the best, considering Minato and Kushina could hardly stand each other anymore. Naruto was honestly kinda glad he didn't know why.

Luckily enough, they were perfectly capable of holding down the home turf while Aris and Kushina were gone.

Or Minato was, anyway. Naruto had moved into his own apartment.

Not like Minato could blame him. The house just felt . . . _empty,_ without Aris and Kushina there to brighten it's walls. Minato himself had taken to using the Hokage's quarters kept within the tower.

Besides family matters, Naruto had also been making some more . . . _practical_ use of his time.

The Red-light district used to be a criminal hotspot. Now? Now the only people of ill-refute there were women of the night and thieves.

Seemed all the murderers and rapists he killed weren't exactly _missed_.

Probably helped that nobody could identify what was left of them as anything that belong to a human.

Something he was glad for.

He may have enjoyed the bloodshed, but he didn't much care for the thought of leaving grieving widows behind.

Good people looked best smiling, after all. And anybody willing to grieve had to have at least a _little_ good in their heart, right?

Although, it was rather annoying that the remaining criminals had gone into hiding. It made honest work like his rather difficult.

* * *

His apartment was a fairly nice place. A little large, perhaps, enough for about three people besides him to live there if they wanted to. A kitchen overlooking the living/dining room, which was complete with a nice, wooden dining table, led to a bathroom, and after that, two bedrooms. One of which he had thrown a whole bunch of nice mattresses all over, covered said mattresses in blankets and pillows, and the other which looked like a fairly ordinary guest bedroom, with a queen-sized bed, a window, a nightstand, and a closet.

All in all, he thought the place was made for sleep overs. Not that anybody agreed to sleep over. Even Iruka had refused! What, did she think that he was asking for the good old _triple X_?

 _Actually, she probably did. Woops?_

Moving through the apartment, he thought about his plan for tomorrow. About how to pass the test without his Sharingan.

Admittedly, if he kept his eyes closed during the test, nobody would notice, but all the same . . .

It would be embarrassing to have to use the Sharingan just to complete the Bunshin jutsu, of all things. And it would gave away he had it to anyone who wasn't in the know.

And considering the level of incompetency that seemed to be rampant in the village, that number was probably fairly large.

His chakra control had improved leaps and bounds, but the furthest he had gotten to mastering the standard bunshin without his sharingan had been about 60 clones. Way too many.

Using the sharingan, he could see his chakra flow, and with the increased processing speed it also granted him, he could manipulate said chakra flow almost perfectly. Especially if he utilized Uteki.

. . .

 _Oh well._

 _Agonizing over it won't do me any good. I'll do some more training, and If I can't get it tonight, I'll figure something else out. Easy._

* * *

He failed the test.

That one phrase should be enough to explain why he's sitting on a random rooftop in Konoha, agonizing over what to do next.

He stopped, however, when he caught a familiar scent on the wind.

"Figured I'd find you camping out somewhere up here, Naruto."

Looking behind him, he wasn't too surprised to see him up there.

Mizuki had always struck him as something of an oddball.

Now he knew why.

"Say, what would you do if I told you there was still a way for you to graduate?"

* * *

Minato had never seen it coming.

All he had to do was leave a few pictures of Rosa he had snapped while she was in the shower on his desk, and Minato was out cold.

He went ahead and left those behind. After all, who would believe that he, not even a genin, had taken naughty pics of a career ANBU?

He did his best to stifle the maddened giggles.

He _did_ remember to grab the scroll on the way out, though.

Naruto quickly came to a stop at the meeting point Mizuki had described to him, and wasted no time reading through the scroll.

His memory may be fallible, but as a being made of nothing more than Yin chakra, Kyo had a spectacular memory.

He got through a fair amount of it before he heard movement.

Rolling the the scroll back up, he turned to where he heard the movement.

Where he saw Iruka-sensei pull herself out of the brush.

Turning on his sharingan, he saw something interesting. Two somethings, to be exact.

Before Iruka could react, she already had a shuriken embedded in her throat.

'She' then quickly turned back into Mizuki, and fell over, gurgling.

It was times like these he was glad he had done projectile training on the side. He may have prefered up close and personal, but there was something to be said about the look of surprise plastered on the face of Mizuki's soon-to-be corpse.

Turning over to where he saw the second something, he decided to call her out.

"You can come out now, Iruka-sensei."

When she did, he was surprised by what he saw.

Shock.

"You alright there, Iruka-sensei? You look a little wobbly."

Snapping out of it, she turned towards Naruto and saw . . . _concern?_

Steeling herself, she asked her question.

"Naruto, why did you betray the leaf!?"

The confused look he gave her said it all.

"Betray the leaf? When did I do that? All I did was kill Mizuki and steal this scroll, which I was gonna return soon-ish anyway."

Seeing the look of confusion on her face, he continued.

"Did you not know Mizuki was a traitor? I thought it was pretty obvious, once I took the time to think about it."

At first, the mere suggestion left her shocked.

But then she thought about it.

Thought about Mizuki's recent focus on the villages secrets . . .

Judging by how pale she got, she had just pieced it together herself.

Naruto frowned.

Pulling himself to his feet and turning towards her, he continued.

"C'mon Iruka-sensei, keep it together. I really wouldn't know what to do if you fell apart here."

He was surprised, though not unhappy, when she fell into his chest.

He was unhappy when he heard her begin to quietly sob.

"Uh . . ."

He supposed seeing a friend, a partner, you had known for well over six years turn traitor did that to a normal person.

Heck, might have done it to him too, if he didn't see it coming.

As Naruto wasn't a normal person, he really didn't know what he could do to help her.

So he did what he did best.

He followed his instincts.

He gave her a good hug.

And got a good handful of her ass, while he was at it.

* * *

Iruka recovered quickly, Naruto noted.

Quickly enough to give him a fairly solid beating, anyways.

He, of course, enjoyed every second of it.

It was made all the more enjoyable by the fact that she wasn't crying anymore.

Such a _lovely_ time would surely haunt his, uh, _lesser_ dreams.

* * *

Judging by the look on Minato's face, Naruto judged that he and Sarutobi had been watching the events play out in the crystal ball.

"Naruto." He greeted.

"Pops." Naruto returned.

Quickly suppressing the urge to strangle his son for his lack of delicacy (he'd make do with the fact that Iruka had done it for him), he continued.

"You have returned the scroll?" At seeing his son nod, he passed him a blood red ninja headband, complete with the symbol for Konohagakure, the Village hidden in the leaves.

"Then consider yourself promoted. Report to the academy in two days time for team assignments. Dismissed."

After holding up the headband to the light, Naruto passed his father a quick mock salute and a grateful, loving glance, and then tied his new headband around his upper right arm, and made for the door.

Only to be stopped by a hand on his shoulder.

Looking to see who it was, he feigned surprise when he saw Sarutobi.

"Hey, Jiji. What do you need?"

Taking a quick glance towards Minato, he saw he was conversing with Iruka.

Now was his chance.

"Is it true you took some rather . . . _scandalous_ photos of one Ketsueki Rosa?"

Naruto flashed him a mischievous smile.

"Why, I'd never." He then handed him a few more of said nonexistent photos out of his nonexistent collection.

Sarutobi quickly handed him some Yen for his troubles.

"See you later, Jiji."

Naruto then made for home. He imagined he didn't want to be there when the recently returned Kushina heard about the photos.

He was well aware he wouldn't be able to avoid Rosa, however.

* * *

(1) An Amaryllis means "worth beyond beauty". I thought it fit.

(2) Means raindrop. You already know what it does, if you read the last chapter.

* * *

Rewrite 678: Complete.

There may be somethings I missed, but I wanted to get the rewrite done so I could continue on with the story. Let me know what you think.


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